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Jameels Park Phase 3 funding on hold after new landfill‑closure note from DEM
Summary
Councilors heard that $2 million in grant awards support Jameels Park Phase 3 but that accepting an infrastructure-bank upfront payment would obligate the town to complete the project; the planner also flagged recent Department of Environmental Management (DEM) documents suggesting the town may face a landfill‑closure citation unless remediation proceeds.
Warren town planners told the council that Jameels Park Phase 3 has secured roughly $2 million in grants for preconstruction and construction work but that the town faces a crossroads over funding timing.
One grantor — the infrastructure bank — is willing to pay preconstruction costs up front, which would reduce the town’s immediate cash needs but would legally obligate the town to complete the project on a reimbursement basis and could carry bridge‑loan costs and closing fees. Planner Herb Durfee said the preconstruction work could be structured so construction would not begin before July 1, 2025 to allow the council to budget for interest and closing costs.
Durfee also notified the council of newly surfaced input from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM). DEM records from 2004 and follow‑up in 2010 show unresolved landfill‑closure requirements; Durfee said DEM had previously agreed to delay enforcement while the town sought grants but that recent documents suggest the agency could pursue formal citations unless the town moves forward on closure work.
Council members directed staff to pause major commitments for Phase 3 while the solicitor and engineering staff assemble clarifying legal language and to return next month with options, including whether to take a bridge loan from the infrastructure bank, pursue reimbursement only, or request extensions from grantors.
